Brick and block wall reinforcing



June 28, 1938. J. P. BEM

pnlcx AND BLOCK WALL REINFORCING Filed May 4, 1957,

svvyvw INVENTORQ, 4

fisep/z PBem ATTORNEY Patented June 28,. 1938.

2,121,943 I (BRICK BLocK WALL REINFQBCING v Joseph F. Benn, oaklandfcalif. I Application May 4, 1937, Serial No; 140,668 5 Claims. (oi. 72-40 I I anchored to the bricks themselves, and one of I This invention relates to brick,block, or hollow tile wall construction, and in particular to a simplified reinforcing system for holdingthe bricks e or :blocks together against collapse of the wall ,5 from vibration, heavy winds or earthquakes.

I The principal object of the invention is to provide'a cheap, easily applied reinforcement which dispenses with the necessity of preformed metal reinforcing units while; accomplishingequal or better reinforcing of the Wall.

Another object of the invention is to provide amethod and means for reinforcing walls of relatively soft brick and block such as "adobe brick, brick and blocks made of clay, sand and asphaltum, asphalt emulsions and other"binders,' and which general type 'of brick or blocks are adapted I to have nails driven into them without cracking.

Another object is to provide means for applying the novel reinforcing system to common or cement or concrete brick and block walls.

Other objects and advantages of my wall reinforcing constru'ction will appear in the following description and accompanying drawing.

2 5' In the drawing: I

Figure 1 is a plan View of 'a brick orblock'. building wallas in course of construction, showing a corner of the building and'wi-th the wall reinforced by my improved system.

stated that it is quitethe custom in brick and block Wall construction to insert reinforcing rods both vertically and transversely as the walls are iron rod devices have been provided with'ends bent over to engage either the outer sides of the bricks, or to be embedded into holes in the bricks V filled with mortar a'sshown in United States Pat- 50 ent No, 1,962,514. Wire mesh is sometimeslaid between thecourses of bricks, also angularly disposed strips of metal, or'asinuous wire have been laid between the courses to .be locked in the mortar as shown in old United States Patent No,

55 44,418, but which were notactually connected or hard fired brick and block walls, as well as hard Figure 2 is a: similar plan View of a brickor I built up, and that various preformed wire and of the bricks.

the particular features of my improvement is to provide a continuous wire reinforcing or lacing back and forth from brick to brick which is'positively-anchored'tothe various bricks over which it passes. l

In my system of reinforcing I pass a wire'back andforth from brick to brick-after giving the wire a turn about a nail or pin projecting a short distance (about inch) out of the'bri'ck. This is done between every or some only of the courses continuously around the wall including thecorners; though the latter may have afew additional strands. The same system may be applied to the vertical outer or inner surface of the walls tobe later oove'redlwith plaster orotherwise concealed fromview. a In the drawing designates the bricks or'blocks of which the walls are constructed", and whichare put together with mortar, cement, or any special adhesive; The several plan figures showv walls composed of the bricks in thickness, though it is to be'understood that the walls may be of any number ofbricks orblocks in' thickness insofar as my invention is concerned, andalso that vtheibricksorblocks may be of any size or material,1:also solid .or hollow, or with one or more. fiues suchas hollow tile or hollow. composition or concrete' blockspthough in its simplest aspectlit applies particularly to such compositionbricks or blocks as are'adapted to have a stout nail driven in Without rupturing the block suchblocks for instance as made from compressed mixtures of dry clay,-sand and a bituminous binder inthe form of an irreversible aqueous emulsion" fI f asphalt readily obtainable on the market.

.With such bricks or blocks the nails may be driven in by a man below just before hoisting the bricks to the bricklayers and thus use time otherwise, generally wasted. The 'nails are indicated as projecting from the bricks at Z and are ordinary heayy wire nails though preferably galvanized to prevent rusting.

i In Figure 1 but one nail is shown projecting from eachbrick, while in Figures 2, 3 and 4 there are two nails projecting from the visible faces As hinted, itis not necessary that the bricks of each tier be supplied with nails as every third or fourth tier will generally be found ample, though they may be used in each tier for greater strength. Y

The wire which ties or laces the bricks together from nail to nail is shown by single line..3 and is preferably a tough pliable galvanized iron wire of about {a inch or somewhat less in diameter, or two or more strands of lighter wire may be used. Heavier wire may also be used but adds difiiculty in use, for if not straight to lie substantially flat will interfere with proper seating of the next tier of bricks, as their weight alone might not be enough to flatten out a hump in it. Common round wire is preferable, though it may be of any cross section or fiat if desired.

After a course of bricks or. blocks is .laid up in mortar or cement in the usual manner, or with bituminous binder, if the bituminous composition blocks are used, the wire is twisted about a projecting nail head and passed in zig-zag manner back and forth from nail to nail, and

preferably given a tight twist or complete turn about each nail. The wire extends around the corners in the same manner, though I may run one or more additional strands around the corners of the wall as indicated at 4 in Figure 2, and is also twisted about the nail heads which it extends to.

Figures 1 and 3 show the use of but one run of wire, the former with but one nail in each brick and the latter with two. In the latter case the wire passes at right angles across every end joint of 'each brick and twice across each side joint. The run of the Wire at the corners of the building may vary considerably as indicated in the several views of the drawing.

InFigure 2 two nails to each brick are used and two runs of wire are employed in zig-zag crossing arrangement as shown. This makes a very strong reinforcement.

If desired nails may project from the lower sides of the bricks also, and if kept within the wires or laced area will contribute additional strength, but the use of the wire as shown tied to the nail heads in every third or fourth tier, is found sufficient.

In applying the wire, the workman carries a small roll of wire which he unrolls as he goes along and twists the wire about the successive nail heads while drawing the wire taut.

In buildings or localities subject; to severe strains or vibrations, my continuous wire lacing may be applied to the outer or inner vertical sides of the walls as indicated in Figure ,4,where the elements are numbered as described, and the arrangement substantially like that of Figure 1 in repetition, though various modifications in the lacing arrangement may be used. The lacing may extend around all four sides of the building.

In using my system with hard fired bricks,

tiles or blocks wherein nails cannot be driven, I form suitable holes for the nails, pins or staples, and insert them with or without cement depending on the fit, though in the case of concrete blocks the nails may be pushed in while the blocks are soft if desired.

In using the words brick or bricks in my claims, it is to be understood to cover any building blocks such as of concrete, clay, tile, or composition reinforced in the. manner herein set out. Also any use of the words nail or nails in the claims is intended to cover any similar device, such as a pin, hook, or staple which is ar-' ranged to project from the brick to receive the wire su'bstantially in the manner described.

Figure 5 is an enlarged detail and shows the wire given a simple complete turn about the nail projecting from the brick, though thewire may be double if desired and given any number of turns about the nail or twisted or tiedthereabout in any manner. It is evident that pieces of wire extending to only a few bricks may be used in succession if desired.

Having thus described my improved system of continuous wire lacing of brick and block walls, what I claim is;

1. A brick wall in which a plurality of nails project from each of the adjacent bricks and wire passes to and around the nails of adjacent bricks lacing them together.

'2. A brick wall in which a plurality of nails project from each of the adjacent bricks and wire passes to and around the nails of adjacent bricks lacing them together, said wire arranged in crossing relation between each four nails.

3. A brick wall in which a plurality of nails project from the brickswithin the wall at a given tier of bricks, and a wire passes to and around the nails from one brick to another lacing the bricks together in a manner to cross the end joints of the brick at least once and the side joints at least twice.

4. A brick wallin which a plurality of nails project from the bricks within the wall at a given tier of bricks, and a wire passes to and around the nails from one brick to another lacing the bricks together in a manner to cross the end and side joints of the bricks substantially at right angles.

5. A brick wall in which the bricks are provided with projecting nails and a wire passes around the nails from brick to brick lacing the together. 1

JOSEPH P. BEM. 

